Making Sense of Scents
by Im-just-peachy
Summary: And now, after however many years of being around her, he could map each and every scent she carries with her to emotions, seasons, and always, to her. LAURWALK.


Lauren Lopez never smells bad. He is not just saying this because it would be

rude, or because he has been friends with her for what feels like forever, and

in love with her for at least half of that, but merely because it is a fact.

Never, ever, has Lauren brought anything but delightful aromas to each of their

interactions. And now, after however many years of being around her, he could map

each and every scent she carries with her to emotions, seasons, and always, to

her.

He will start with the basis. Vanilla and coconut. This much has been the same

since the day he met her: vanilla scented skin, and the sweet tropical smell of

her chocolate locks. She wafts this every time she walks past him, stands near

him, and, though he knows it isn't true, sometimes just thinking about his tiny

friend, tricks his senses into smelling what may or may not actually be there.

The sweet smell is a perfect testimony to the woman herself. The comforting and

lovely smell of vanilla is purely representative to the warm heart she

possesses. And the tropical scent of her hair symbolizes the bouncy and

fun-loving girl that everyone knows. There two together? It is like he has come home.

Joe Walker officially declares that fall has arrived the moment he catches a

whiff of the bonfire she carries with her. It is no secret that Lauren and Julia

both treasure autumn for the crackling flames that they warm themselves around

in their teeny back yard when they are with friends or without, the two, Lauren

especially, like to sit out there to read or just think at the close of a long

day.

The start of winter is brought by her breath. When the usual spearmint

breathing is replaced with peppermint due to candy cane ingestion, he knows it's

high time he begins his Christmas shopping. This time of year also carries the

smell of pine with her, he will admit that it took him a few years to figure

this one out, but one day, when Joe showed up to her apartment unannounced to

hide moses' present, he found a funny sight indeed.

_"Hello?" he called out into the seemingly abandoned room, his blue eyes scanned_

_for any sign that the girls were home._

_She probably would have gone unnoticed had it not been for the sneeze the_

_resounded around the silent room._

_"Lauren?" He questioned, walking the few steps to the evergreen in the corner of_

_the room, red gift bag still in hand._

_She still hadn't answered._

_Chuckling a bit to himself, he reached down and with one of his large, slightly_

_roughed hands, and pulled the small brunette out from under the trees lowest_

_boughs by the only visible part of her body, the fuzzy sock covered ankle._

_The moment her face emerged from the brush, her already doe-like eyes only grew_

_larger in surprise. And as her cheeks grew pink in embarrassment the 25 year old_

_yanked the two buds from her ears._

_"Wox! What are you doing here?" She stayed lying on her back, her dark curls_

_still spread across the wooden floors from her slide out from under the tree._

_The normally shiny tendrils now sparkled with what looked like green confetti,_

_and it was this moment Joe discovered the pine tree smell that radiated off her_

_every Christmas season._

Spring brings a new fresh smelling Lauren, of course the vanilla is still

prominent, and the coconut still lingers like a halo around her head: the crisp

smell of a fresh rain radiates from the petite brunette. She didn't like

umbrellas, she scarcely used them at all. She enjoyed the freedom of twirling

and skipping the puddles of rain, and is still enchanted by each and every drop

that skitters over her skin each spring. This calming and clean aroma seems to be

absorbed by her and released only to test Joe even more. Mingling amongst this

is the sweet smelling flower: Lily of the valley. Her flower. She had discovered

their existence the first spring since moving to Chicago. The tiny white buds

appearing overnight along the path on the side of her house. With their lovely

scents, she found it only sensible to pluck a few an bring them inside. Setting

them in a small vase beside her bed, the pretty but powerful fragrance permeated

through all cloth in the room. Her clothes, her blankets, her furniture, all

retain a small trace of the satiny flower, so whenever she would dress in the

morning, Lauren would carry a small amount of the flowers perfume along with

her.

Summer followed her around like a lost puppy, even in January, Lauren radiated

like the sun an her cheery disposition mimicked the joy kids have when they know

they have three months without school ahead of them. But, as soon as the

environment matched her temperament, her vanilla skin blended with the smell of

sunscreen.

So while most people will know spring is coming when the snow melts away and

flowers are in bloom. And they know summer has come when schools are out and

they are sweating just by walking to their mailbox. They know leaves falling and

changing color is present when autumn arrives. And winter is known by the deep

snow and the woolen mittens... But to Joe Walker, the years pass in variations

of Laurens scent. And to him, it just makes sense.


End file.
